Dissertation and Applied Doctoral Project Components

Academic Reader Review of the Manuscript

As part of your final dissertation or applied doctoral project manuscript, your work will be reviewed by the Academic Reader (AR). The following resources can assist with preparing you for the AR review.

Proofreading Services

The Academic Success Center (ASC) offers a one-time complimentary 3-hour review of your manuscript with emphasis on formatting per the dissertation/applied doctoral project template, a basic review of citations and references per APA 7, and prominent grammatical and structural concerns. The proofreader will identify 2-3 primary themes for improvement. Proofreading sessions do not review content or research resource data. To participate in this review, once you have an approved final dissertation/applied doctoral project manuscript draft, claim your coupon below:

The Doctoral Student Experience (DSE) refers to the five-chapter dissertation experience for doctoral students in the following programs:

All PhD programs at National University and the DBA, DCJ, and DPA degrees.

If you are enrolled in one of these programs, please read on for resources pertaining to your Oral Defense.

How and When the Oral Defense is Scheduled:

You are ready for your Oral Defense once all your dissertation milestones are complete in the Doctoral Record. You must have an approved final Dissertation Manuscript in the Doctoral Record before your Chair can schedule the defense.

The defense is typically scheduled for 90 minutes. When it's time to schedule your defense, contact your Chair to determine the date and time. Typically, your Chair will ask for your availability for several dates/times. Your Chair will request the scheduling of your defense. When the defense is scheduled, you will receive the Zoom link. All scheduled defenses will be put on the common calendar in the Commons. Defenses are open for anyone to attend, including other students. 

The slide decks for this presentation can be found under the "Program Specific Resources" page under your specific college/school and program.

For more detailed information, please consult the documents below.

he Applied Doctoral Experience (ADE) refers to the three-section applied doctoral project for doctoral students in the following programs:

From the Sanford College of Education: The EdD, EdD-EDL, and EdD-ID programs

From the School of Health Professions: The DHA and the DNP programs

From the JFK School of Psychology & Social Sciences: The DMFT program

If you are enrolled in one of these programs, please read on to learn more about the professional presentation or poster presentation option when you are finished with your applied doctoral project manuscript.

Professional Presentation and Defense Options for ADE Students:

Following the approval of the Applied Doctoral Manuscript, ADE students are required to make a conference-ready professional presentation of their Applied Doctoral Project findings and contributions to the field to their Doctoral Committee. Students should refer to their school-specific templates and consult with their Chair to fully understand the two options available to them.

The two options available as follows:

• Slide Presentation: ADE students may prepare a professional slide presentation at the level of quality expected for a juried or expert-reviewed professional conference. A question-and-answer session will follow the presentation. The slide decks for this presentation can be found under the "Program Specific Resources" page under your specific college/school and program.
• Poster Presentation: ADE students may prepare a professional poster presentation at the level of quality expected for a juried or expert-reviewed professional conference. A question-and-answer session will follow the presentation. The poster template and other poster development resources can be found under the "Research & Publishing Resources" page.

How and When the Professional Presentation Defense is Scheduled:

You are ready for your Professional Presentation Defense once all your dissertation milestones are complete in the Applied Doctoral Record. You must have an approved final Applied Doctoral Manuscript in the Applied Doctoral Record before your Chair can schedule the defense.

The defense is typically scheduled for 90 minutes. When it's time to schedule your defense, contact your Chair to determine the date and time. Typically, your Chair will ask for your availability for several dates/times. Your Chair will request the scheduling of your defense. When the defense is scheduled, you will receive the Zoom link. All scheduled defenses will be put on the common calendar in the Commons. Defenses are open for anyone to attend, including other students. 

For more detailed information, please consult the documents below.

All Oral Defenses and Professional Presentations will be held on Zoom. Please consult the following resources for assistance using Zoom.

Your Oral Defense or Professional Presentation is an important event: the culmination of years of hard work and research. Most of the work that students do on their Dissertation or Applied Doctoral Project is written, so many students feel a bit anxious and unprepared as they work toward the speaking component of their Oral Defense or Professional Presentation. Here are a few simple things to keep in mind:

• This is your moment- it is all about the work you have done, and you should be very proud to present.
• You are the expert on your specific study. While your committee members are experts in their fields, you are the expert on the unique research that you have completed.
• You want to be prepared and feel good about the experience, both during and after the Oral Defense or Professional Presentation.
• You will have chances to present at conferences in the future, so this process is excellent practice.

The Oral Defense or Professional Presentation is a type of live performance, almost like a musician would give. With that analogy in mind, consider the following tips:

Plan

• What will you need during the Oral Defense or Professional Presentation?
• Where will you be during the Oral Defense or Professional Presentation? For example, is there a place away from noises and other distractions that would work best for you?
• Plan for any “what if…?” situations. For example, what will you have as a back-up plan if there is a sudden technical glitch?

Rehearse

• Use screen-recording software, such as Kaltura Capture available in NCUOne, to record yourself while you practice narrating your PowerPoint presentation. You may want to do this multiple times so that you can improve and become more confident each time you rehearse.
• Do a self-critique of your recorded presentation rehearsal(s). For example, many students find that they speak more quickly than they think they do, while others notice speaking quirks when listening to themselves on a recording. Finding these little things now will make you more confident on the day of your Oral Defense or Professional Presentation.
• Ask for others, such as trusted friends, family members, or fellow students, to critique your recorded presentation. They may see things that you don’t notice and may also give you positive feedback and encouragement.
• You may also want to rehearse live in front of others (in person or online using Zoom, Skype, etc.) before your defense or presentation.
• Don’t over-rehearse (just like a musician).

Prepare

• Talk with your Chair about the process. Your Chair will review your PowerPoint presentation and may want to meet with you to go over the process/procedures. The general format is as follows:
  • Intro from Chair.
  • PowerPoint (around 20-40 minutes) from the candidate.
  • Questions from SME/Chair, and perhaps others.
  • Deliberation process (private, between SME/Chair).
• Have everything ready to go the day of your Oral Defense or Professional Presentation, including:
  • PowerPoint slides
  • Notes (Tip – Since you will be sharing your screen, you will not be able to have your presentation visible on the screen, so either print them out or have them on an additional monitor).
  • Technology needs (Test your microphone volume, battery/power on your computer, PowerPoint capabilities/software, location of presentation files on your computer, etc.).
  • Anything you need to feel comfortable (a glass of water and a comfortable chair, for example).
• Arrive early
  • On the day of your Oral Defense or Professional Presentation, be sure to arrive early (10 minutes) so that you can test your set-up and have everything ready to go.
  • Let your Chair take the lead and set the stage for your performance. You have worked hard to get to this significant day.

Additional Resources for the Oral Defense or Professional Presentation:

The Three Ps that Prepare Doctoral Students for a Successful Oral Defense

Below is a list of potential questions asked during an oral defense or professional presentation. This list is not inclusive, but it provides examples of questions a doctoral candidate may be asked.

• What do you see as the main contributions of your research for your discipline, practitioners, and/or policy makers?
• In what ways, if at all, does your study contribute to the existing literature and/or prior research in the field? In what ways does it extend the literature? Contradict the literature? Fill gaps in the literature? Clarify contradictions in the literature?
• In planning and conducting this study, which major theorists influenced your thinking?
• What are the conflicting issues in your field (every field has conflicts—hence, the research problem), and what contributed most to your understanding of these issues?
• In what ways do you expect that your work will clarify the conflicting issues in your field?
• What motivated you to conduct this study? In other words, what brought you to explore this particular topic?
• What new learning about qualitative research have you come away with as a result of conducting this study?
• What, if any, are the unanticipated outcomes of your study? What surprises have you come away with?
• What new learning about yourself have you come away with, having conducted this study? What additional insights has the dissertation or applied doctoral project experience afforded you?
• What were the high and/or low points for you in the dissertation or applied doctoral project experience?
• If you were to redo this study, how might you conduct this study differently? How might you change your research methodology? Why?
• How could you build on or extend this research in the future?
• What are the major strengths and/or limitations of your research design/methodology?
• What might further strengthen this study?
• Why did you analyze the data in the way that you did? How might you have analyzed your data differently?
• What suggestions might you offer somebody about to conduct a study of this nature?
• How did you arrive at your theoretical or conceptual framework?
• What are the theoretical components of your framework?
• What informed your conceptual framework?
• How did you decide upon the components that you included in your conceptual framework?
• How did the components of your conceptual framework assist you in visualizing and explaining what you intended to investigate?
• How did you use your conceptual framework to design your research and analyze your findings?

Reference

Bloomberg, L. D and Volpe, M: Completing your qualitative dissertation: A Roadmap from Beginning to End (Sage 2016).

One of the smartest things you can do as an NU doctoral student is to attend and participate in the Oral Defense (or Professional Presentation) for your fellow students. Whether you are currently getting your feet wet with Chapter 1 or Section 1, in the middle of the process, or about to defend, you will learn so much from attending other students’ oral defenses (or professional presentations).

Why Attend a Defense or Professional Presentation?

Here are a few reasons to make time in your schedule to attend these important events:

• Learn about both the process and the product for an entire dissertation (or applied doctoral project) journey.
• Prepare yourself for your dissertation (or professional presentation) defense.
• Support your peers by cheering them on and being present for them at this critical moment.
• Participate in a scholarly community.

Students are often surprised when their Chairs encourage them to attend dissertation (or professional presentation) defenses. You may be surprised at how easy and beneficial it is once you try! 

Check the NU Commons for the Defense calendar in the University Community Forum.  You will see all upcoming dissertation defenses listed there, with the necessary login links. Select the Zoom meeting link just before the defense is scheduled to begin and you become a participant. 

Helpful Tips

• Be sure to double-check time zones, as it’s easy to write down the wrong time and accidentally miss the event. Times are listed out in Pacific, Mountain, Central, and Eastern time. If exporting as a calendar invite, double check the time listed since it will be based on the time zone you set within Commons.
• Take some time to choose an event that works for your schedule, as the events occur at various times of day/evening.
• Defenses that you attend do not need to be in your specialization or even your school. Attending defenses, both related and unrelated to your research, could be beneficial for many reasons.
• Whether you are attending to support a colleague or are curious about what to expect, you can attend as many as you would like. Some students only attend one peer’s defense, while others attend many over time. It depends on you as an individual and what you’d like to get out of the experience.

What to Pay Attention To

Now that you’re excited to attend your first dissertation defense, here are a few things to pay attention to:

• Process and product of the doctoral candidate’s research.
• Presentation skills and scholarly dialogue from the candidate and the committee.
• Format – The Chair will introduce the doctoral candidate. The candidate will present for about 20-35 minutes, and then the SME and Chair will ask questions of the doctoral candidate.
• Proper etiquette/process – During the presentation, when the candidate is speaking, make sure your video is turned off and you are on mute to reduce distraction. You may be invited to ask questions, before or after the SME and Chair have asked questions of the doctoral candidate. The Q&A is an opportunity to offer support, further engage in scholarly dialogue, and think about the types of questions asked at dissertation defenses and other types of scholarly presentations.

Attending a peer’s defense (or professional presentation) provides many opportunities for learning, and it can provide even more afterward. Many students have found ways to network with each other after a defense (or professional presentation) by extending the conversation over email, phone, or other methods later on. This can provide a more in-depth experience and more guidance for students who attend defenses (or professional presentation) and can further the impact of the scholarly community beyond the defense itself. Many students team up to attend each other’s defenses, in order to provide moral support and cheerleading. When it’s time for you to plan your defense, consider getting support from your peers. It’s all about participating in an ongoing scholarly community together, as ongoing learners.